The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1887-11-19

Erie canal, he struck "line boat, AMI ate
few days arrived at Buffalo, where h
boarded the lake steamer Oliver Newberry
bound for Toledo. The voyage was peril
Gus one, and for eight hours the chances
we're much against the steamers ever reach
ing Cleveland. When she arrived she wa
so nearly "water.logged' that the fires had
been drowned out. 1.-THE next day we made
another start, but the storm arose again and
we put back to the harbor we had just LETT
We waited till 1t abated, and reached Toledo
in three days. We there took "double
decker coach on a railroad from that place
to Adrian, Michigan, a distance Of about "a
miles. These coaches would DO novelty
now. Their idea was derived from double
deck ed steamboats,. There were two apart
ments, or stories high, and seated alike in
each" Together with some Of his travelling
companions he hired lumber wagon, which
conveyed the party to Niles, where they
expected to find a steamer for Chicago, but
the 81. 10. river was too low to admit boats
of much sire, especially a steamer; so they
"took il O. foot TO Michigan City. Traveiing
through that State was their first experience
of western life. Among other things hard
10 get vas milk, not SO much for want OF
specimens of the bovine kind. able and will
ing TO yield an abundance Of lacteal nourish-
ment, as for the lack Of mixers, for the
people we're everywhere laid up with that
peculiar acclimating ceremony of the initia-
tory or first degree Of western life, "ageT,
as our pedestrians found the citizens in ones,
twos, families, squads, plstoons, and whole
villages, giving their entire attention to en-.
ergetic and we'll executed "shakes." At
Length, reaching Michigan City, they found
a steamer and we're landed in due time in
Chicago. Al that city he boarded Frink &
Walker stage and in August, 1887, first set
foot in Ottawa, after about two weeks jour
ney. Remaining here short time, he took
the stage again for his destination, Gales
burg. Arriving at Peoria, the western stage
had gone on, and as the next one would not
leave for three days to come, he concluded
that, as Greeley said about the specie pay
ment, "the way to resume was to resume
so the only way for Mr. Thompson to get
there was to "get there Accordingly he
took "sbanks mare" and went.
TRAVELS ON FOOT AND GETS LOST.
He reached Charleston, q town just born,
midway between Peoria and Knoxville, at
noon and got his dinner. Starting on, he
soon came to an unexpected sort of grief.
Tn. stage road, travelled only semi weekly,
became 30 dim that he mistook for it a track
that led to the bottoms Of Spoon river.
Finding another trail, which he supposed to
be the right one, he struggled on till near
night, when he came upon "squatter,"
who was unhitching his team from his
schooner. Let us explain here that squat
ter is not person who sits on Lis launches
like Malay, but pioneer who builds
shanty and lives upon any tract Of land that
suits him without leave Of the owner, and q
schooner in those days was not water craft,
nor big glass Of beer, but huge movers
wagon. By this squatter Mr.. Thompson was
directed two miles further on, where he
found habitstion and there had his first
experience Of frontier life, in a small, one
roomed shanty, box for table, and baked
pumpkin for supper, and yet he was happy.
lie found that he had drifted ten miles north
of Knoxville. Next day he found Galesburg
without further mishap.
RETRACEs HIS STEPS.
After living couple Of year, in tho pop
ulous city Of New York, the little village Of
Galesburg did not suit him, and in few
weeks he returned to Peoria Missing the
stage at Knoxville, he tramped it on foot,
setting out at the rising Of the sun and dill
gently pursuing his journey, reached Peoria
at sunset. After following his trade year,
DR.. Mossman, needing some one to take
care of his drug store, rendered the position
to Mr.. Thompson, who, being bright and
young man, under the Doctors
tuition soon became fair druggist clerk.
The resumption of building the canal seemed
a good opportunity to open branch store
at Ottawa, and boarding steamboat with q
small stock of drugs, Thompson landed at
Ottawa in February, 1910. On board the
same boat were Samuel W. Raymond and
cold Father True" Mr.. Thompson inquired
of Mr.. True, "What kind of place is Otta-
wa for a young man to settle in?' The lat
ter replied, "If you will stick your stake
there to stay, you may do we'll; but remem
Der, "a rolling stone gathers no moss"
SICKNESS AT PEORIA.
There are some incidents Of Peoria life
which he relates. In 1889 sickness pre-
vailed to such an extent that there were not
we'll ones enough to take care of the suffer
ers. Mr.. Thompson, though not pretending
to be more than drug singer" was fire.
quently called out to serve as an Esculapius,